Color-Changing Clothes Could Match Mood, Surroundings

Next-generation threads may soon give a whole new meaning to the phrase "change your clothes"advanced new fibers that can change color with a flip of a switch.

The threads may one day be used to make clothing that suits the wearer's mood or to allow a person to blend in with the environment.

The concept is similar to the way light-sensitive eyeglass lenses darken when exposed to sunlight.

The threads, created from materials known as electrochromic polymers, change color in response to an electric current, said Gregory Sotzing, a professor of polymer and organic chemistry at the University of Connecticut in Storrs.

"The part we're getting into is the wearable display, a flexible fabric display," Sotzing said.

An article on the research appears in the April 9 issue of New Scientist magazine.